Search Publications
DART Impact Ejecta Plume Evolution: Implications for Dimorphos
Pajola, M.; Bertini, I.; Cremonese, G. +29 more
The NASA Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft impacted the moon Dimorphos of the [65803] Didymos binary system and changed the binary orbit period, demonstrating asteroid deflection by a kinetic impact and indicating that more momentum was transferred to Dimorphos by escaping impact ejecta than was incident with DART. Images of the D…
Constraining Time Variations in Enceladus's Water-vapor Plume with Near-infrared Spectra from Cassini's Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer
Hedman, M. M.; Bockelée-Morvan, D.; Capaccioni, F. +2 more
Water vapor produces a series of diagnostic emission lines in the near-infrared between 2.60 and 2.75 µm. The Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) on board the Cassini spacecraft detected this emission signal from Enceladus's plume, and so VIMS observations provide information about the variability of the plume's water-vapor conte…
On the Fate of Slow Boulders Ejected after DART Impact on Dimorphos
Moreno, Fernando; Campo Bagatin, Adriano; Tancredi, Gonzalo
On 2022 September 26 23:14 UT, the NASA Double Asteroid Redirection Test spacecraft successfully impacted Dimorphos, the secondary component of the binary (65803) Didymos system, demonstrating asteroid orbit deflection for the first time. A large amount of debris, consisting of a wide size–frequency distribution of particulates (from micron-sized …
The New Horizons Extended Mission Target: Arrokoth Search and Discovery
Fabbro, S.; Stern, S. Alan; Weaver, Harold A. +37 more
Following the Pluto flyby of the New Horizons spacecraft, the mission provided a unique opportunity to explore the Kuiper Belt in situ. The possibility existed to fly by a Kuiper Belt object (KBO), as well as to observe additional objects at distances closer than are feasible from Earth-orbit facilities. However, at the time of launch no KBOs were…
Noble Gas Planetology and the Xenon Clouds of Uranus
Zahnle, Kevin
Noble gases provide tracers of cosmic provenance that are accessible to a future Uranus atmospheric probe. Argon and krypton are expected to be well mixed on Uranus with respect to H2 and He, although condensation at the winter pole may be possible. The Ar/H2 and Ar/Kr ratios address whether the materials accreted by Uranus r…
Estimate of Water and Hydroxyl Abundance on Asteroid (16) Psyche from JWST Data
Woodward, Charles E.; Rivkin, Andrew S.; Müller, Thomas G. +10 more
Our understanding of solar system evolution is closely tied to interpretations of asteroid composition, particularly the M-class asteroids. These asteroids were initially thought to be the exposed cores of differentiated planetesimals, a hypothesis based on their spectral similarity to iron meteorites. However, recent astronomical observations hav…
Global Mapping of HCl on Mars by IRTF/iSHELL
Aoki, S.; Vandaele, A. C.; Daerden, F. +6 more
Hydrogen chloride (HCl)—a key marker of the chlorine cycle on Mars—has been recently discovered in the Martian atmosphere by the ExoMars/TGO mission. In-orbit data indicate that this molecule appears in the atmosphere only in a limited time period and specifically in the southern summer season. A snapshot global mapping of HCl is indispensable to …
One-dimensional Microphysics Model of Venusian Clouds from 40 to 100 km: Impact of the Middle-atmosphere Eddy Transport and SOIR Temperature Profile on the Cloud Structure
Vandaele, Ann Carine; Terada, Naoki; Imamura, Takeshi +4 more
We conducted a simulation of H2SO4 vapor, H2O vapor, and H2SO4–H2O liquid aerosols from 40 to 100 km, using a 1D Venus cloud microphysics model based on the one detailed in Imamura & Hashimoto. The cloud distribution obtained is in good agreement with in situ observations by Pio…
Understanding the Dust Environment at Mercury: From Surface to Exosphere
Krüger, Harald; Kobayashi, Masanori; Murakami, Go +13 more
We provide an overview of our understanding of the dust environment at Mercury and the role that dust plays in shaping the planet's surface and exosphere. Our understanding of the role that dust impacts play in the generation of Mercury's atmosphere has evolved considerably with continued analysis of results from the MErcury Surface, Space ENviron…
Long-term Monitoring of Didymos with the LCOGT Network and MRO after the DART Impact
Lister, Tim; Chatelain, Joseph; Gomez, Edward +8 more
The world's first planetary defense test mission was carried out in late 2022 by NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission. The main DART spacecraft, which was accompanied by the ASI-provided LICIACube cubesat, intentionally impacted Dimorphos, the smaller secondary of the near-Earth object binary system (65803) Didymos, on 2022 Septe…